|
|
Post by tobirolo on Aug 16, 2017 7:59:37 GMT -8
I know there have probably been tons of these kinds of posts, but being a new gerbil owner, I was wondering if I could have some help determining the colour of my little Mango? I adopted him three days ago and have been doing as much research as I can about gerbils (I wasn't expecting to adopt one. I was bothering my mom for months into letting me adopt a rat and when we finally went to the pet shop she said I could have anything except a rat or mouse because their tails disgust her. So, not wanting to hold off on the adoption in case she changed her mind about the entire thing, I adopted a gerbil. I wanted two, but the lady at the store told me I would have to keep them in separate cages/tanks because they would fight, so unfortunately Mango is all alone right now  ) BUT enough of my rambling! Here are some pictures, and sorry if they aren't the best quality, the little rascal wouldn't stop moving around: imgur.com/a/7WKatimgur.com/a/uCZaBimgur.com/a/Sxijximgur.com/a/WUgg2He's mostly a light grey but has a white strip down his nose, a white collar, a white belly and a few patches of white fur (most notably one on his lower back). His eyes appear red at times and black at others, probably just due to the changes in lighting. Oh, and he's about three and a half months old if that helps  I tried looking for his colour on my own but couldn't find any descriptions to match. (If he looks ill at all please let me know! I want to make sure he's healthy but I don't have all of the signs/symptoms covered yet. He looks fine to me but I am very new to this and could be wrong. Much appreciated!) |
|
|
|
Post by smash4290 on Aug 16, 2017 9:26:23 GMT -8
Pied lilac (or maybe even sapphire)
|
|
|
|
Post by catnut on Aug 16, 2017 14:16:58 GMT -8
he is a cutie! too bad the worker at the pet store said two is a bad idea, gerbils' do better in pairs esp. when young but you do have to watch for signs of declanning. He is young enough, that if you are allowed, i'd get him a male friend, hopefully a sibling, but he may need to be split caged as hes' been alone 3 days. You could google ill gerbil signs but if he is eating, drinking, active, breathing not too fast (young gerbils' do sleep a lot and lone gerbils' do as well), and make sure he has safe things to chew to keep his teeth worn down, that's a good start. There is good advise on this forum so check some of the other posts re:food, etc. and that should help you out. Mango is cute! What are you feeding him?
Take care,
Tammy
|
|
|
|
Post by tobirolo on Aug 16, 2017 18:59:34 GMT -8
smash4290 - You're right, he does look like a possible pied lilac/sapphire. The two are so similar I can hardly tell the difference from looking at pictures online. Thanks you! catnut - I know, I really wish I had known they're better in pairs I would have insisted on getting him and his brother. I'd love to go back and see if he's still there, or at least another male around Mango's age, but I have no idea when I'll be able to get back to the shop again (the nearest is an hour away). Plus I'm worried Mango is a little stressed right now as he's gone from the pet store to a small cage, to a larger tank in the matter of a few days, so introducing a new gerbil and changing his tank around once again so soon seems like it'd be overwhelming for the poor boy. As for Mango's health, he doesn't seem to be showing any signs of common illnesses from what I can tell. And I was worried about him not drinking but just minutes before writing up this post I saw him drinking from his water bottle, so that's relieving. I've noticed he breathes quickly at times, (I haven't noticed if it's an all the time thing though because he moves too quick to tell at times) but then again maybe that's their normal breathing which just seems quick to me because I'm not used to it? I just want him to be happy and healthy, it makes me so sad thinking he may be anything other than that At the moment I'm feeding him a food mix called daily diet (for hamsters and gerbils), and a small piece of fresh veggies every day (he seems to enjoy the broccoli as opposed to the carrots). Thanks for all of the tips and suggestions! It's nice to know there's a community that'll be here to help with anything a new owner may need |
|
|
|
Post by Shooting Star on Aug 17, 2017 15:39:13 GMT -8
Pied Lilac. Sp Sapphire is significantly lighter. |
|
|
|
Post by tobirolo on Aug 19, 2017 18:25:37 GMT -8
Shooting Star - Ahh so that's the difference. I'll probably still mix the two up, but thanks for the bit of info (and for taking the time to answer)!
|
|
|
|
Post by catnut on Aug 20, 2017 14:51:10 GMT -8
when gerbils' are first getting used to you then will drink when you aren't watching but eventually they will do it around you so it can be hard to tell if they are drinking. Just take it slow with the taming so he doesn't get overwhelmed and i'm sure he will feel more secure, being alone he may be more skittish or he could be a quieter gerbil. I've had lone gerbils and they've been fine as well as pairs (have a pair of girls at present), they are all different. Try not to stress too much and just know what to look for, if you are calm, your gerbil will be calm,too.
take care,
Tammy
|
|
|
|
Post by tobirolo on Sept 9, 2017 16:03:36 GMT -8
This is a bit of a short update, but I went back to the store a few weeks ago and adopted who I am pretty sure is Mango's brother. I named him Orbit, and after quarantining him and reintroducing the two they have been getting along wonderfully. It's been about three hours and they haven't shown any signs of fighting. In fact, Orbit is much happier (he was the shyer of the two) and is running around and much less hesitant to my touch. I'm hoping their relationship continues like this for the next few days then onward Thanks for all of the help. I'm not as anxious as I was when I first brought Mango home, and I'm a lot more confident as a gerbil owner. Both Orbit and I have opened up quite a bit this past week! |
|
|
|
Post by catnut on Sept 10, 2017 14:26:01 GMT -8
that's good you were able to adopt his brother so they will both be happy. |
|
) BUT enough of my rambling! Here are some pictures, and sorry if they aren't the best quality, the little rascal wouldn't stop moving around: 
I tried looking for his colour on my own but couldn't find any descriptions to match. (If he looks ill at all please let me know! I want to make sure he's healthy but I don't have all of the signs/symptoms covered yet. He looks fine to me but I am very new to this and could be wrong. Much appreciated!) 
